When She Wanted Happiness
by BattyBigSister
Summary: Sasuke's sister-in-law has news for him that he isn't sure he wants to hear. For that matter, Itachi isn't likely to be thrilled either.
1. Chapter 1

Some of an AU of another Naruto AU story of mine, 'What my mother said'. It's only about two chapters long, but it appealed to me. I hope you enjoy it.

**Disclaimer**: Naruto, both manga and anime, and any related work do not in any way belong to me. This is a fan-made story, unrelated to the original creators of Naruto, intended purely for the amusement of other fans. No defamation of any sort is intended towards the original manga and anime, its characters and creators or anyone else related to the official Naruto franchise. This work is available for free, on a wholly non-commercial basis, and no profit has been made or is intended to be made by its production and distribution.

* * *

"You know I love you, right?"

The boy stilled. His lean muscular body lent over his widely spaced legs as he sat poised on the bed, both bare feet placed firmly on the ground, apparently absorbed in his task. The Uchiha family crest was displayed largely and prominently on his high-necked petrol blue vest top, his only covering above his black harem trousers and the purple sash and the ominous rope combination he still wore around his waist.

In itself the question had just been tagged onto the end of a familiar enquiry into how his preparations for the chuunin exams were going, but something in the tone made Sasuke tense. The whetstone shifted in his hands and the point of the kunai _(**1**)_ drifted downwards. His intelligent dark eyes frowned and long black strands of wayward hair swayed loosely over the pale skin of his forehead as he inclined his head a little towards her.

"O'Nee-san_(**2**)_?"

She avoided his gaze, adjusting the outrageously big basket on her tiny hip as she bent to fill it with his discarded laundry, the household chore she had entered his room for in the first place. Her stubby infantile fingers had to grip tightly onto the wicker weave above her head to prevent the vessel from slipping out of her grasp. She knelt slightly on the worn tatami_(**3**)_ mats to make it easier, her bronze-coloured wavy hair brushing loosely over her shoulders as she did so. Her bare grubby child-sized feet were just visible under her long patterned kimono, made of thick neon-pink velveteen even though it was summer and the Land of Fire never got that cold to begin with.

She seemed to swallow nervously, not looking at him as she began to speak. "You know I love you very much. As much as if you were one of my brothers by blood," she whispered, her tiny hands twisting one of his shirts between her fingers as the words spilled over her tongue in a sudden desperate rush, "That won't change. No matter what happens you can always talk to me or come to me for anything. I'll always help you if I can."

"Nee-san." The kunai fell to the floor. His eyes were wide with sudden shock. "Nee-san... what?"

Abruptly she stood up. Dropping the shirt into the basket, she seized the container's woven rim and turned as if to go out the door. He was by her side in an instant, gripping her nearest wrist in both his hands. The built-in wardrobe to rattled next to them, shaking from the sheer force of his movement.

There was a chill in the room and it didn't come from the open window. The Spartan little attic room that Sasuke had called his own since he was thirteen was devoid of furniture save for the bed and the desk beside it. Decorations seemed to consist only of the team photo near his bedside and a large wall scroll nearby outlining the first twenty-five Shinobi Rules, yet the place had never felt as bare as it did right now. Something in her attitude was making Sasuke feel very alone.

"Nee-san," he repeated, pulling her around to face him. He was sixteen, vastly bigger and stronger than she was even without his shinobi_(**4**)_ training, so try as she stubbornly might to she keep her face turned away from him, he could see her pale skin flushing under her freckles and clenching around her nose and eyes. She looked like she was about to cry.

He dropped to his knees so he could meet her at eye-level, keeping his grip on her rounded wrist deliberately gentle so as not to hurt her by accident. "What's going on?" he demanded. The normally cool deep bass of his melodious voice sounded shaken and his features were tense, almost afraid.

"I... I'm..." she fumbled for the words, obviously unsure about what she was going to say. The awkward, and for her over-sized, laundry basket slipped from her precarious grip. She took a deep breath, shaking her hand out of Sasuke's grasp as she did so. When she raised her head, her large blue eyes meeting his, there was an air of determination on her face. "When your brother comes back from his next mission, I... I might be going back to live with my parents for a while."

Sasuke's head reared back as if she had slapped him. Numbness crawled over his skin and he found himself swallowing hard. "Why," he gasped. He stared at his empty hands, clenching them slightly, "Is it... is it me?"

It had always been a fear of his, ever since he had returned from Orochimaru's hideout some months before. He knew the trouble everyone had gone too to get him back. He knew the trouble he had been ever since the Uchiha uprising when he lost both his parents. He knew the sheer venom with which his thirteen year old self had treated his brother's girlfriend when she first moved in with them. Although gradually since Danzo's death the few remaining members of the clan had stared to rally around Itachi, rather than condemning him as the traitor who chose the village over them, Sasuke knew he hadn't exactly been pulling his weight. Mostly the burden of standing by the new chief-of-ANBU and head of the Uchiha fell to his brother's girlfriend, to the woman Sasuke had gradually found himself calling his 'nee-san'. Frankly, he wouldn't have been surprised if she had just gotten sick of him.

That said, her eyes widened in abject horror at Sasuke's exclamation. "No! Of course not!" She reached up on tip-toes and snatched his chin between her thumb and forefinger, yanking hard as she glared fiercely into his eyes. "Don't ever think that, you," she snapped, her thumb pressing hard enough to make him wince, "You're my little brother as much as Itachi's. I just told you that. Nothing you do is a burden to me." She knocked her forehead sharply against his, half in affection half in annoyance and only released him as he started to wriggle, turning away and rubbing at the sore spot.

Her eyes were still glaring at him in outrage and he glanced away in embarrassment, staring at his hands. "Then did Aniki_(**5**)_... do something?" His fingers twitched and his entire face contorted at the unfamiliar notion, but he seemed very much at a loss to come up with another explanation.

She paused. One small hand batted at the ends of her hair. "No..." she eventually sighed, shaking her head as she turned back to her fallen laundry, "Not exactly."

Sasuke's brow twisted further, utterly perplexed. "Then...?"

Her head snapped upright, her shoulders stiffening as her hands clenched without looking at him. "It's more..." she interrupted, apparently surprising herself with the frustration in her voice, because she breathed deeply forcing herself to relax before whispering, "It's more what he doesn't do any more."

Slowly she turned towards him again. He could see the lines in her face clearly as she buried her arms in the folds of her kimono. She seemed sadder and more tired than he had ever seen her before.

"To be honest, Sasuke..." she wet her lips, the words awkward in her mouth, "We barely talk these days and when we do it's just to fight... about you, about the clan, well... chiefly about you. " He tensed and she caught herself, glaring at him again in annoyance. "No, stop that," she snapped, aiming a kick at his shin and missing even though he hadn't moved, "That doesn't make any of this your fault. It's just that you're the only thing he and I have in common that he cares enough to talk about... or fight about rather. Anything else and it's always 'sorry, later', 'later'..." She shrugged her shoulders, her arms spread open wide as he regarded her carefully, mistrusting of her words.

He shook his head defiantly. "Aniki's still..."

She shook hers too, sighing loudly. "I think your leaving for Orochimaru affected him more than he'd like to admit," she explained, fiddling with the edge of one of her kimono sleeves. "I mean," she raised a meaningful eyebrow at him, "We all know it was a stupid thing to do and something you are pretty much going to regret for the rest of your life.. but Itachi, well, sometimes I swear he looks at you and only sees his little baby brother who just entered the academy. You're a fine shinobi, Sasuke, but you're all he's got left and after what happened last time... well, he's scared of letting you out of his sight. He blames himself for it all, I think. I know you've matured so much since then. Heck, it isn't exactly a lesson you'd need to be thought twice, is it?" She smirked, as he stiffened guilty, avoiding her face. "But..." she sighed deeply, rolling her tongue around the word as she sought for more. She held her hands loosely in front of her chest, indicating herself. "That's why he's always having a go at me about how I'm dealing with you at home... over nothing most of the time. I know you've heard us fighting, so don't start. It's probably also why he doesn't seem to trust himself to just raise you himself any more either. He's such an idiot sometimes." She shook her head and shrugged, as if that would somehow solve the matter and seemed lost in her own thoughts.

Sasuke stared at his feet, unsure of what to say in reply. "I know Aniki still cares for you, Nee-san," he whispered at last, "He told me he wants to ask you to marry him."

The hoarse snort he got was not the response he had expected. "Hah, yes, I imagine he does want to secure his in-house babysitter," she growled, her fist clenching at her side, as he stared in wide-eyed surprise at her. "You and I, we both deserve more than this Sasuke," she hissed in visible annoyance, "That's why I'm leaving. He needs to grow up, to see you for the fine trustworthy shinobi you really are... To know that you are easily as strong as he is now and just as clever... and I..." She stopped abruptly, having apparently said more than she wanted to.

He frowned, staring at her with surprise. "Nee-san, what is it?"

"I'm so sick of feeling alone all the time..." she whispered.

"Alone?" he echoed, his eyes widening.

She closed her eyes, running her hands over her face as pursing her lips in obvious disgust at herself. "Ah, I'm sorry, Sasuke," she laughed apologetically, her tone more light-hearted than she clearly felt. "This isn't really something you need to hear about your Aniki and me, is it? Just know that we both love you very much. Even when I leave here, I still want to be your Nee-san if you let me." The words were fond and incredibly sincere, but it was a dismissal and Sasuke knew it.

"Nee-san... what's wrong?" he demanded, his arms outstretched as he strode towards her, "Please... talk to me... If there's something I can do...?"

"No, Sasuke," she replied, shaking her head as she tried to hoist the overly large basket onto her hip again. "This isn't your problem."

"O'Nee-san!" He seized her arm, yanking her back towards him hard. The basket flew across the room. She skidded across the floor, losing her balance and bringing them both to their knees as she crashed into his side. He grabbed her shoulder, glaring down at her, his eyes fixed on hers until at last she looked away in shame.

"I shouldn't tell you this," she mumbled, her voice little more than a whisper as she sat on her behind propped up against his knees, staring over her shoulder at the scattered clothing, "But... the truth is... there was another man."

Sasuke thrust her away from himself as if she'd scalded him, crawling backwards on his hands and knees in desperation. He choked, staring wide eyed at her as his shoulders shook. "That's not true," he whispered, "That can't be."

She sat with her eyes closed on the rush-mat floor and hugged her middle as best she could with her tiny arms. "He told me he was in love with me," she continued her confession ever more quietly, still not looking at him, "I wasn't having any of it because of your Aniki, but he made me feel something I haven't felt in a long time. He made me feel happy... special, loved. I even felt myself falling a little bit in love with him too in the end. It was like I had been sad for a long, long time and only when I was shown happiness could I realise how unhappy I truly was."

"Are you leaving Aniki for this guy?" he demanded, his fists shaking as he stared at her from his position against the bed. His eyes were suddenly burning hot and he was finding it increasingly difficult to look at her.

"No," she shot back, glaring at him as her lip curled in disgust at the notion, "And I'm not leaving your Aniki at all until I can tell him face to face... but this is no place for me any more either. I'm sorry, Sasuke, I'm sorry. I never wanted to leave you behind." Her face fell with the last choked words, surrendering what was left of her pride to her own pain. Tears ran down her face, gathering in her folds of her full cheeks were he was used to seeing her dimples.

The young shinobi only stared at her like that for a moment, then he sprang to his feet, seizing his discarded kunai pouch from the floor.

"Sasuke!" she yelled, crawling onto her knees, but he had already disappeared through the window.

* * *

(1)A sharp pointed tool, similar to a trowel; often used a weapon by ninja due to its multiple uses, ease of concealment and ability to be explained away. Japanese media has since also reinvented and popularised the kunai as something more like a throwing knife or dagger, which is how one typically sees it used in _Naruto._

(2) A familiar address for one's own sister - or in this case one's own sister-in-law.

(3) Traditional Japanese rush mats, used as floor covering.

(4) Another term for a ninja

(5) A term of address for one's own older brother


	2. Chapter 2

She caressed the petals with her hand, raising the small flower towards her nose for a breath of its fragrance. It was something strong and heady with a rich lily-like undertone. She found she rather liked it. The delicate pink petals covered her stubby hands as she gently twirled the stem … Soft satin membrane danced over her fingertips. She found herself smiling softly.

It changed in a moment. Black flames erupted from the centre of the blossom, scorching her hand. The soft pinks shrivelled to charred ash in front of her eyes. She gasped, dropping the flower on the ground as the fire consumed it.

She didn't need to be told what had happened. Though not a shinobi herself, she understood the significance of what she had seen... and the fact that there was only one family capable of producing the event. "What was that for?" she snapped, growling as she turned around, rubbing her sore hand on the fluffy fabric of her kimono, "It was just a gift from a kid who's mother I helped with... What happened to you?"

With the last sentence, her voice had dropped in volume. The anger fading noticeably as her brow furrowed in confusion and her posture relaxed, becoming markedly less confrontational. Konoha's perpetual sunlight streamed down on the narrow walkway, making its way through the gently whispering treetops. Long unkempt grass swayed on the side of the earthen walkway; brightly coloured pebbles were scattered at odd intervals underfoot. They seemed to match the different coloured roofs of the town, which sprawled out from under the wooden edging of the escarpment. It gave the feeling of being hugged close to the stone faces of watching Hokage, staring out at the world from the safe embrace of the academy below. It wasn't her favourite spot in the village, simply because Konoha boasted of so many places of natural beauty from which to choose, but she appreciated it nonetheless.

The slight sting in her hand already disappeared, but she eyed the rough-looking figure in front of her with a mix of irritation and concern. He was hovering in the shadow of a tree, wearing the darkness like a shroud over his shaking frame. It blended seamlessly into the grey and black of his ANBU uniform, even his pale skin seemed waxen in the half-light. His head was bent towards the trunk of the tree, long dark hair hanging drably over his angular features. One arm was slung over his middle, hugging himself as he pushed away from the tree. A single drop of red blood rolled over the shadowed gray of his cheek, making her chest clench at the sight.

"Kazue," he breathed her name, relaxing only slightly at the sight of her, "Kazue." He took a step forward, never leaving the shadows as he moved. His impossibly dark eyes were fixed on her. One side of his face was swollen to a blossoming crimson and purple, the black eye filling out even the deeply pronounced tear ducts on his face.

"Itachi," she whispered, her head moving ever so slightly up and backwards, her shoulders dropping along with her jaw as her eyes widened, "I thought you were still on your mission? Are you alright? Are you injured?" A severe injury was the only reason she could think of that might have brought the ANBU captain home before his assignment was complete; it was a theory given more weight by his bedraggled appearance. Her fists clenched slightly.

"Tell me it's not true." The words echoed in her ears as little more than a horse whisper. He seemed to mouth them more than say them.

She frowned, confused by the change of topic, "What's..."

Breathing still as ragged as if he had been running for an age, he gazed down at her. His mouth opened, but he couldn't seem to find any more words. Helplessly he simply stared, his hands shaking and his eyes wide and desperate.

Something in his sheer anguish made the realisation slowly dawn upon her. "Oh. I see." She felt a little flushed. Her whole body was numb with the shock and embarrassment. "I didn't think you'd mind to be honest," she mumbled, half-ashamed, as she nervously ran her fingers through the ends of her thick hair, "I thought... It's been so long since we even... I thought..."

He dropped to his knees, the motion bringing him down to her full standing height. She staggered forwards, closing distance between them in a sudden hurry. The very edges of the tree's shadow fell over her face and his hands reached tentatively for hers, pulling her towards him until they stood mere centimetres apart. "I mind," he gasped, "I mind. I mind a lot. Kazue, I..."

Tiny and childlike, her hand nevertheless managed to grip his back tightly. She blinked the water out of her eyes as she sought to lock his gaze with hers. "You what...?" she whispered, edging her face closer to his.

"I can't... Without you, I... Kazue..." one of his hands cupped her chin, the gaze searching her face was open, forlorn and vulnerable, like the words escaping his trembling lips, "Don't leave me. Please don't leave me." His expression was contorted, almost as if he were crying. Still there were no tears that she could see. Only the red stain caused by his foolish use of the Amaratsu.

"You want me to stay?" she murmured the words reverently, almost in disbelief.

"Yes," he whispered back. His grip tightened on her hands.

She took a step backwards, her frown deepening. "As more than just Sasuke's babysitter?" she growled, that same disbelief hardening the line of her jaw and narrowing those around her eyes.

His brows contracted. He stared at her as if the notion was absurd. His hands hung grimly onto her shorter arms, his fingers gripping her tightly.

"As more than just some sort of obligation you have to the clan to provide them with a female matriarch?" she went on quickly, her head rising only slightly at the hurt in his expression, "A bride for their leader?"

"Yes!" he snapped, staring into her eyes. The lids around his own were unusually reddened and his lips trembled as struggled to form words. "Of course."

She stared back fiercely, meeting his gaze head on. "And you're not just telling me this because it's what you think I want to hear?" she demanded, gazing sceptically at his expression.

"Kazue," he breathed, closing his eyes as if the word pained him, "I want... I need you to stay. I couldn't cope if you left me. I'd go mad. I'd... Kazue, please." His thumbs pressed into the back of her tiny hands at his confession, his head bowed slightly, the words clearly making him feel more vulnerable than he was used to.

"You love me?" she whispered, incredulous at her own conclusion, "Still?" Her own shoulders had started to shake. He could feel the movement through his hands. She wet her lips and accidentally bit her own tongue in the process, her entire body feeling oddly weak.

Smiling weakly, he glanced up at her face again. "So much," he muttered, his face flushing with obvious embarrassment, "So so much."

Air rushed out of her, as she was filled with a heady dizzying sensation, almost as if she were in freefall with both feet firmly on the floor. She wasn't sure if her knees were going to buckle or if she would fall straight on top of him. She did neither, somehow managing to mutter, "I didn't know..."

She might as well have hit him. His body jerked backwards, yanking at her arms where they were still connected. He stared at her, his eyes wide with shock and hurt.

"I didn't know that," she repeated, gasping, staring at her feet.

His hands left her arms. They hit his knees with a quiet slap as he slumped inwards. Defeated, his shoulders shook almost imperceptibly. His breath came in slow heavy gasps.

"You didn't know," he repeated, his voice a little flat, "That I love you any more?"

Smiling sympathetically, almost apologetically even though in truth she had little to apologise for, she reached out and touched his face, gently caressing his check. His hand enveloped hers, pressing the tiny appendage tightly in the grip of his fingers.

"How could I have known?" she sighed, by way of explanation, "When the only response you ever give someone is 'sorry, not now' there will come a time when even 'right now' will be too late."

He gazed at her, fixing her gaze on him. "Is it too late?" he inquired, his voice almost pleading, "Am I... too late?"

"What?" she blinked, her nose rumpled in confusion, "What do you mean?"

"This other..." he swallowed, as if his mouth were suddenly too dry, and he seemed unable to look at her face, "The other man... Do you love him? Do you... do you want him more than... me?"

She froze, staring at him in shock. Slowly she pushed both her arms around his neck, pulling him down sharply into the crook of her neck, his body flush against hers.

"Don't be a damned idiot," she growled, twisting her fingers tightly in his hair, "I'm not leaving you. Not yet. Not ever, as long as you still want me. I can't help that. I'd always stay. Yes, someone tried to ask me on a date a few times. I admit I liked the attention after being ignored for so long, but I never did anything with him. I didn't even kiss the guy, not while I still have even a small part of you. I love you, idiot, even when you ignore me for a year and a half."

"Kazue," and suddenly she found his arms tightly around her, lifting her off the ground as he pressed kisses against any part of her face he could reach, her ear, her nose, her lips, her eyes... His mouth mumbled her name all the while as he kissed her. His voice was dry and breathless, his breath conversely hot and moist against her skin. Her fingers were still locked in his hair, so tightly it must be painful, but he didn't seem to mind as he rained kisses on her in wordless relief and joy. She giggled slightly under his persistent touch, pulling sharply on the back tresses until he was lined up with his mouth in front of hers. Her expression glazed over slightly, and she licked the corner of her upper lip, pulling his head down ever so slightly.

He stared breathlessly as she pushed forwards across the tiny gap between them, pressing hard against his mouth. His shoulders relaxed and she wobbled in his grip, almost falling until he pulled her tighter against him, closing his eyes and loosing himself in the warm, hot pressure on his mouth; the heady sensation shot straight to his head and spine and knees. He felt breathless and weak and amazing as his brain virtually exploded at the sharp trilling sensation against his lips. His wholer body was heavy, full and numb with the sheer joy of holding her, of feeling her, of knowing that everything would be all right once again.

"Was it a rough mission?" She touched the bruising around his eye, tracing the swelling with her fingers as they broke apart. Her breathing came abnormally fast and her face was flushed, her eyes sparkling with an abundance of love, even with the obvious concern for him.

"I... err... No," he said at last, realising what she meant, "No, Sasuke did that."

Her fingers froze. "Sasuke?"

"Yeah," Itachi grimaced with embarrassment, avoiding her gaze as he recounted, "He tracked us down with that Naruto-friend of his and started screaming something about how if I ever made his Nee-san cry again, he'd dedicate his life to hunting me down and killing me as painfully as he could... Truth be told, I didn't catch half of it. Once I realised what he was yelling, I couldn't move, couldn't think... I just stood there... let him hit me. When I could finally move again... all I could think about was finding you..."

She nodded, a little nonplussed at the declaration. "That's... oddly romantic," she kissed her teeth contemplatively, something just off the edge of sardonic at her own realisation, "Not that I'm exactly thrilled by the fact that you let your little brother beat you to a pulp, but still... in a strange way, it's kinda romantic, isn't it?" Her laugh was a little dry, but her eyes were alive with her affection him. There was a blush on her cheeks and a slight tremble in her breathing that spoke volumes about the way the admission of his emotion had really made her feel.

He smiled at her, still a little embarrassed, and then suddenly his features went blank and his eyes fixated on a point just beyond her face. "Oh no," he groaned and buried his face hard against her shoulder.

"What?" Her eyes widened in alarm at the tone of his voice.

"I abandoned the mission half-way through," he hissed, his shoulders suddenly tight beneath her grip, "I'm going to get all of us in so much trouble with the council and the Hokage and..."

"It'll be fine," she informed him curtly, with far more confidence than she actually felt. Her arms gripped him a little tighter by way of reassurance, "Sasuke and your team are a bunch of smart kids, they'll figure something out."

"Famous last words, I'm sure," he muttered softly against her skin, dropping to his knees so that her feet were once again resting on the ground. All the time the warm tight pressure of his arms still clasped her tightly against his chest and he wouldn't take his face out of the crook of her neck.

"Do you regret coming?" she asked, refusing to let go either as she tugged at a strand of hair near the back of his head to get his attention.

"Not a bit," he sighed, "That's probably the worst part." He tilted his head, smiling ruefully at her from the side of his face. A life-time of being the perfect professional shinobi crumbled at the mere sight of the emotion shining out of her features for him.

"The best part, thank you," she smiled back and kissed him gently, stroking the top of his ponytail with her fingers, "We'll figure something out."

He leant forwards, breathing in the familiar scent of her hair as he did so."We will," he mumbled back.


End file.
